Okla. budget talks center on cuts, revenue streams

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – With six weeks left in the 2014 session, behind-the-scenes negotiations among the House, Senate and governor’s office are ramping up on how to plug a $188 million hole in the budget and fund programs for education, public safety and child welfare.

The chairmen of the Republican-controlled House and Senate budget committees have been meeting with Governor Mary Fallin’s Secretary of Finance Preston Doerflinger (DOR’-fling-ur), along with the fiscal staffs for the three sides.

They are divvying up a nearly $7 billion budget, and talks are centering around a combination of proposed cuts to some state agencies, along with how much revenue might be available to use from agency revolving accounts and cash reserves.

Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the Legislature must complete its work by the last Friday in May.